Articles of hosiery



y ,7 A. M. WHITE 3,510,882

ARTICLES OF HOSIERY F Filed May 14, 1968 FIG. 2 FIG. 4'

FIG. 5

FIG. 6

INVENTOR ANNA MAE WHITE SAEA BY ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,510,882 ARTICLES 0F HOSIERY Anna Mae White, 561 Almena Ave., Ardsley, N.Y. 10502 Filed May 14, 1968, Ser. No. 728,980 Int. Cl. A41b 11/00 US. Cl. 2-239 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An article of hosiery for rendering leg blemishes invisible. The article of hosiery includes an inner flesh colored stocking of such denier and mesh as to render the inner stocking, for the most part, opaque, and an outer conventional stocking within which the opaque stocking is located, this outer stocking being joined to the inner stocking and coacting therewith to provide the appearance of an unblemished leg within the outer stockmg.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to articles of hosiery.

In particular, the present invention relates to articles of hosiery which preferably take the form of ladies stockings.

Under certain circumstances, it is highly desirable to be able to render a leg, or blemishes thereon, invisible. For example, there are individuals with leg scars, with readily apparent veins at the legs, or with other types of blemishes of a permanent nature and such as excessive and readily apparent hair. Also, under certain circumstances, there are temporary blemishes, such as sunburn, cuts, or bruises. 7

At the present time, conventional stockings, and ladies stockings in particular, are either so obviously used for covering blemishes (e.g., cotton lisle stockings), or are so sheer or are made of a mesh which is open to such an extent that such permanent or temporary blemishes cannot be hidden. As a result, individuals who suffer from such permanent or temporary blemishes either are disturbed when wearing conventional stockings, because of the fact that the stockings are unfashionable, or because such blemishes are visible, or they simply are not in a position to wear stockings which are visible and instead resort to the wearing of slacks, for example.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is accordingly a primary object of the present invention to provide a solution to this problem.

In particular, it is an object of the invention to provide an article of hosiery which will effectively, cosmetically hide the leg within which the article of hosiery is ice pletely opaque in appearance because of its relatively heavier denier and close mesh, for example, and which has a flesh color. This inner stocking is situated within an outer stocking which is of a conventional construction so that it is relatively sheer or of a relatively open mesh rendering the inner stocking visible through the outer stocking. The outer stocking, by being joined to the inner stocking, provides with the latter a single stocking structure which can be worn in the manner of any conventional stocking and which can be laundered and treated in precisely the same way as any conventional stocking. At the same time, because the inner stocking is substantially opaque, so it will hide the leg from view, and because it is of a flesh color, it will give through the outer stocking the appearance of a normal, unblemished leg.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention is illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawings which form part of this application and in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of an article of hosiery according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation of the article of FIG. 1 showing one portion positioned within another portion;

FIG. 3 is a transverse sectional plan view taken along line 2-2 of FIG. 2, in the direction of the arrows, and schematically illustrating the structure of the stocking of the invention;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary longitudinal section taken at an upper part of the stocking of the invention to show how the inner and outer stocking-s may be joined at their top ends;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary longitudinal section taken at the top end of the structure of the invention in a manner similar to FIG. 4, but showing a different embodiment of the article of hosiery;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary longitudinal section taken along any portion of the stocking and showing yet another embodiment of the invention; and

FIG. 7 is a transverse sectional plan taken through the toe portion of the article of hosiery of the invention and showing yet another structure for connecting the inner and outer stockings to each other.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring now to the drawings, there is shown, schematically in FIG. 1, in a side elevation, an article of hosiery 10 constructed according to the present invention and in the form of a ladies stocking structure.

As is apparent particularly from FIG. 3, the article of hosiery 10 includes an inner stocking 12 and an outer stocking 14 within which the inner stocking 12 is located.

This inner stocking 12 shown in section in FIG. 3 is substantially opaque. Thus, this inner stocking 12 while having the configuration of a conventional stocking, insofar as its length, size, and outer contour are concerned, nevertheless diifers from a conventional stocking in that the inner stocking 12, which is preferably made of nylon, is substantially or completely opaque. The inner stocking 12 may be rendered opaque in any desired manner. For example, it may have a relatively heavy knit structure formed from meshes which are extremely close and which do not stretch to an extent which will enlarge the loops 3 sufliciently to make visible a leg which is enclosed within the inner stocking 12.

However, it is also possible to use for the stocking 12 a plastic sheet structure of nylon, for example, preferably perforated, and this opaque plastic material can be extruded, for example, and processed in known manners so as to have the configuration of a stocking. Such an opaque sheet structure can be of an elastic stretchable material so that it will conform to the configuration of the leg. If desired, however, the inner stocking 12 can also be manufactured simply from a flat sheet which is cut to suitable configuration and formed into a tube by any suitable seam extending along the back of the leg, and in the case of a thermoplastic, such as nylon, the seam may be provided by fusing the side edges of the blank to each other so that in this way it is possible to achieve fashioning for the stocking. Thus, it is possible to manufacture the opaque inner stocking 12 in a number of different ways at a relatively low cost.

While the inner stocking 12 is opaque, it nevertheless has a flesh color so that when viewed through a regulation mesh and denier stocking, it will give the appearance of an outer smooth surface of a leg.

The outer stocking 14, on the other hand, is of a more conventional construction. Thus, this is a conventionally knit stocking which is relatively sheer or which is made of a relatively open mesh, and this outer stocking 14 can have any desired shade so that its coloring will be of any color which may be in fashion. The outer stocking also performs a covering or cosmetic function inasmuch as it too has color and further tends to hide any blemishes which might be of such a nature as still to show through the inner stocking.

As a result of this construction because the inner opaque flesh-colored stocking 12 is situated within the outer conventional stocking 14, the leg which is situated within the inner stocking 12 is not visible while at the same time the appearance provided by the hosiery 12, 14 gives the effect of a normal, unblemished leg clothed within a conventional stocking.

In accordance with a further feature of the invention the inner and outer stocking may be permanently joined to each other so that they can be put on and taken off in the manner of a conventional stocking and can be laundered and otherwise treated precisely in the same way as conventional stockings. For this purpose, it is possible, as indicated in FIG. 4 in a schematic manner, to integrally connect the inner and outer stockings to each other at their top ends. For example, both of the inner and outer stockings may be knitted as one continuous tube with the knitting program changed when the end of the knitting of one stocking is reached and the starting of the knitting of the other one is commenced in such a way that the inner stocking will be substantially opaque as described above, while the outer stocking will be sheer or of a relatively open mesh, as also described above. With such a continuous knitting of the inner and outer stockings to each other, in the form of a single elongated continuous tube which can be knit conventionally on a circular knitting machine, the inner and outer stockings will be integrally joined to each other at their top ends, and it is then only necessary to turn the tube which forms the outer stocking 14 inside out while drawing it over the inner stocking in order to situate the latter within the outer stocking.

However, it is also possible to directly plait or knit the outer stocking to the inner stocking so as to be joined to the latter at the top and/or the bottom or for that matter, throughout substantially the entire outer stocking, and such a construction is schematically indicated in FIG. where the outer stocking 24 is shown as having the yarns thereof knit directly into the body of the inner stocking 22 of this embodiment. Such interknitting is preferable the the hem portion of the stocking.

On the other hand, the inner and outer stockings may be joined at their end portions or substantially entirely along adjacent, contacting surfaces by bonding as at P in FIG. 6. This can be accomplished via heat where the stockings are made of fibers having a thermoplastic component, or by lightly coating the opposed surfaces with a suitable bonding agent, which would be nreferablv water impervious.

Furthermore, as indicated in FIG. 7, it is possible not only to connect the stockings to each other at their top ends, in the manner shown in FIG. 4, for example, but also to connect the inner and outer stockings to each other at their bottom ends. Thus, FIG. 7 shows the toe portion 16 of the inner stocking 12 and the toe portion 18 of the outer stocking 14. The stitching 20 which is used to fasten the toe portion to the stocking is also used to fasten the inner and outer stockings directly to each other at their toe portions, so that in this way through a simple sewn seam 20 it is also possible to interconnect the inner and outer stockings. Of course, similar fastening of the stockings to each other may be provided at the region where the heel portions of the stockings are situated.

While the inner stocking can be designed so as to hug the leg of the wearer with only a relatively light friction, so that it will function primarily to hide the leg, if desired this inner stocking can be made of a relatively elastic structure so as to be stretched substantially when it is worn and thus act as a support, which is particularly desirable in the case of veined legs. Of course, in addition to providing such support the stocking will also function to cover blemishes.

It is apparent, furthermore, that additional advantages are achieved with the hosiery of the invention. It is, for example, warmer than conventional hosiery so as to be particularly comfortable during wintery weather. Furthermore, because the assembly of the inner and outer stockings is necessarily of a thicker, heavier construction than conventional stockings, as represented only by the outer stocking 14, the article of hosiery 10 of the invention will have much better wearing properties than conventional stockings. In addition, the article of hosiery 10 of the invention is particularly suitable in connection with medical healing procedures. For example, where certain medication is applied to a leg wound and it is required that the wound be protected from the outer atmosphere, the article of hosiery 10 of the invention can be worn on the leg so as to effectively cover the wound to provide the required protection from the outer elements.

At the same time, because the article of hosiery of the invention gives the effect of a normal, healthy leg encased within a conventional stocking, an individual has no hesitation in using the hosiery of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. An article of hosiery for cosmetically hiding blemishes of the leg, comprising an inner, flesh colored substantially opaque knitted stocking, the meshes of which are close, said inner stocking constituting means for closely fitting a leg and for concealing the leg and leg blemishes and the like thereon, and an outer knitted stocking joined to said inner stocking and within which said inner stocking is located, the meshes of said outer stocking being open, said outer stocking constituting means for closely fitting over and for viewing said flesh-colored substantially opaque knitted inner stocking, whereby said inner stocking provides through said outer stocking the appearance of a normal leg.

2. The combination of claim 1 and wherein said outer stocking is sheer and transparent to a relatively high degree.

3. The combination of claim 1 and wherein said inner and outer stockings are integrally connected to each other at their top ends.

4. The combination of claim 1 and wherein each of said stockings has a top end and a foot end, and said 5 6 stockings being connected to each other at their top ends 2,267,199 12/ 1941 Hathorne 66178 and at their foot ends. 3,259,915 7/ 1966 Dison 2-239 5. The combination of claim 1 and wherein the inner 3,301,018 1/ 1967 Knohl. surface of said outer stocking is joined substantially en- 3,307,379 3/1967 Woolley et a1 66178 tirely to the outer surface of said inner stocking.

5 JAMES R. BOLER, Primary Examiner References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 66 178 1,570,027 1/19'26 Allen 66173 

